Cowboy Caden

Last weekend we went to the Benton Franklin County Fair in the Tri-Cities.  Below is a video of Caden's first real cowboy experience.  Enjoy!

Rockin b Ranch

What a fun night we had at the Rockin B Ranch.  This is their last year of performing, and it was very reminiscent of Rawhide in Phoenix but on a smaller scale.  We had a great dinner, they put on a fantastic and entertaining show and keep everyone interested.  The musicians were very talented and we had a blast.


One thing we weren't expecting was the audience participation.  We had the opportunity to interact with the performers.  Caden didn't miss a beat and was able to be a volunteer during the shoot em up show.  He also made his way on stage during the actual dinner performance and basically walked across the stage and smiled for everyone as they were all laughing that he had the guts to walk across the stage.  As super mom, I wasn't sure how to corral him back to where he was supposed to sit.  Luckily the woman in charge let him know that he needed to be sitting.  :) 

Tough being 4 but really fun too!

Awesome day of bowling

We had another awesome day of bowling.  We have turned Caden in to a little bowler as well.  Before we went bowling on this day, we told Caden if he could get a spare or a strike, we would take him out for ice cream.  Well, what do you know, he got a spare, so we headed to Baskin Robbins.  What a fun day we had.  He also bowled this crazy shot.  We weren't even sure what we should tell him to aim for, so we said just try and hit the pins.  He didn't hit those pins, but had fun trying.  He also caught the eye of a young gal on the next lane over.  She though Caden was quite the character and a good bowler too.  Pretty funny to see him bowl and then check to see who was watching him.

Chocolate zucchini cake goodness

Some of you may be aware of the awesomeness that is known in our family as Chocolate Zucchini Cake.  Others of you may have only heard of it.  Well thank you to the power of the internet, I am going to share it with all of you today!

Caden helped me make this cake the other day, and when we put it in the oven, he called it the mud cake.  When it was done and he got to taste it, he loved it.  The joke is on him, there is zucchini in it, so he is getting a little bit of vegetables.  I love it because it is not too rich, but light and fluffy and moist!  Awesome is a great word for it!

One of the best recipes ever!  Here it is:

½ cup soft margarine
½ cup vegetable oil
1 ¾ cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla
½ cup sour milk (can use regular if you don’t have sour)
2 ½ cup flour
4 Tbsp coca
½ tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp cloves
¼ cup chocolate chips
2 cups grated zucchini (shred in food processor, before making cake)

Cream margarine, oil & sugar.  Add eggs, vanilla & sour milk.  Beat with mixer.

Sift dry ingredients, add to creamed mixture.  Beat well.  Stir in zucchini.  Pour batter into 9 x 13 pan.  Sprinkle top with Chocolate chips.  Bake at 325 for 40 – 45 minutes.

Yum!

Dress up at North Wall

I am not always sure what Caden is learning at school, and when you ask him what they do, he gets quiet.  Today he told me they learned about Kings and Queens and I asked if they might see those at the museum today.  He thought they might.... So imagine my surprise to find this picture in my e-mail.  The kids are learning about Kings and Queens and this is them all dressed up!  Notice Caden has a pink wand, it makes him happy!

I hope to post some pictures and stories from our Rockin B Ranch Adventure soon.

Fun at the bowling alley

We are starting early to encourage fun activities that we can do as a family.  Bowling is the name of the game.  As some of you may know, my first job was working in a bowling alley, and we all got the honor of being on a bowling team with our friends.  My mom signed us up for bowling since she felt that we needed a saturday activity that didn't involve tv.  Good idea mom!

Caden was so excited to get his bowling shoes on and that they gave him a ball.  He wanted it to be blue like my ball (still have the falcon from 1995) and I also still have my bowling shoes circa 1995.  Let's just say they are still awesome!

Notice the socks... That is all Caden's doing.  We try to get him to push them down, but he likes them pulled all the way up.  He also picked black socks for the bowling alley... Lets just say he has his own sense of style.  :)

We found a deal that gives kids free bowling every day of the summer.  So what that means is we are going bowling a lot in august.  Caden had so much fun and I was really impressed with the automated bumpers they have.  It's not completely free, you have to rent shoes, but it was worth it!

Justin & I went bowling for date night on Sunday and saw this deal, so we have embraced it.  Happy bowling in August!  I am sure we will be back about 5 more times this month.